News of the Day: 1967

Friday, Nov. 3, 2000 | 9:56 a.m.

Jan. 28: Deaths of U.S. Spacemen Set Back Space Program

Story: America's first three Apollo astronauts were killed by a flash fire that trapped them in their moonship last night during a launch pad test.

Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom, 40, America's second man into space; Edward H. White, 36, the nation's first spacewalker; and rookie astronaut Roger Chaffee, 31, were killed in the tragedy.

April 1: Gaming OK Goes to Howard Hughes

Story: Billionaire Howard Hughes Friday launched a new career -- gambling boss.

By a routine 5-0 vote, the Nevada Gaming Commission granted him a license to operate 22 gambling games and 199 slot machines at the Desert Inn Hotel Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Hughes is buying the hotel for $13.5 million.

April 30: Army, Jail Have Clay on the Ropes

Story: Cassius "Muhammad Ali" Clay, stripped of his heavyweight title for refusing to be inducted into the Army, turned to the federal courts again Saturday to see if he can stay out of the Army and jail.

May 2: Presley, Brunette Beauty in Surprise Vegas Wedding

Story: Elvis Presley, 32, reportedly the highest salaried entertainer in the world, married Priscilla Anne Beaulieu, 21, Monday morning at Milton Prell's Aladdin Hotel.

The Memphis troubador and his gray-eyed brunette bride-to-be landed at McCarran Airport early Monday morning, and drove with friends to the county courthouse where they obtained their marriage license at 3:30 a.m.

Aug. 31: Marshall OK'd for High Court

Story: Thurgood Marshall, the great-grandson of a slave, yesterday won Senate confirmation as the first Negro Supreme Court justice despite Southern opposition.

The roll-call came hours after speeches by Southern senators against the U.S. solicitor general, whose legal triumphs as a civil rights lawyer include the historic 1954 Supreme Court decision outlawing school segregation.